New depths for pay to play

Published On: Jan 13 2014 06:25:53 PM CST

Last week's revelation by Wisconsin State Journal reporter Dee Hall that a bill to limit child support required of wealthy parents was written by just such a wealthy parent and his attorney was not only a great piece of journalism, it revealed how low human beings can sink in the interest of money.

First you have this wealthy businessman, whose incredible desire for money overriding the welfare of the children he fathered, prompted him to seek legislative relief drafted especially for him. Of course he chooses a lawmaker to whom he has made campaign contributions, Republican State Representative Joel Kleefisch. Then you have Representative Kleefisch actually introducing the legislation his campaign donor and his attorney wrote for him. It's the worst combination of stomach-turning and heartbreaking abuse we've seen in a legislature that is good at both. At the very least this proposal deserves to die at Wednesday's committee hearing. Then Kleefisch must answer to his colleagues and his constituents, and the businessman to his children.

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